March 2020: SOCIAL has always believed in paving new paths with the spaces it creates. This International Women’s Day, the brand is kickstarting some trailblazing activities – both inside and outside SOCIAL – to empower and enable its community of women.
Led by culture and inspired by our community, S(#stree)CIAL is not a one-off token day of celebration. Rather, it is an always-on conversation that is deeply embedded in the DNA of the brand. Divya Aggarwal, Head – Marketing, Impresario Handmade Restaurants, says, “SOCIAL is known for creating spaces that epitomize its core values of community and creativity. This International Women’s Day, we are doing just that by initiating conversations around the pillars of Safety, Inclusivity, and Opportunity. These pillars are the driving forces behind our pledge to move forward with the community and leaving no one behind.”
On the back of substantial experience in curating forward-thinking events across the country, the all-day café and high energy bar is hosting three exciting #charcha panel discussions around the topics of Safety, Inclusivity, and Opportunity at select outposts in Mumbai, Delhi, and Bangalore on March 8, 2020. Adding to the conversation will be talk-worthy Live Art demos with three female artists. What’s more, SOCIAL is also collaborating with like-minded brands like MTV, LXME (India’s first financial planning platform for women), and Ladies, Wine and Design, to give its community a free and safe space to convene, collaborate, and communicate.
Special events include a fun session called Girls Just Want To Have Funds in collaboration with LXME, at antiSOCIAL Mumbai. FC Road SOCIAL in Pune will see Art Baithak in association with Palat Studios and Ladies, Wine and Design, where you can come by and discuss art with like minds and even buy handpicked art pieces created by women.
Says Riyaaz Amlani, MD & CEO, Impresario Handmade Restaurants, “We have also internalised the core pillars of Safety, Inclusivity, and Opportunity at a company-wide level. Since January 2020, we have been working actively to make our spaces safer, more inclusive, and employment friendly for women. I hope this gives impetus to other brands in the Indian F&B industry to follow suit.”
To make its customers’ day and nights safer at SOCIAL, the company has proactively employed women bouncers – aka Safety Warriors – who are always on hand to help, should you need it. SOCIAL also has a zero-tolerance policy towards incidents that make women uncomfortable in its spaces. Having shots at 12 AM? Going for a late-night gig? They’ll be there. If you need a cab back home after a late night of partying, the staff will help you book one and also make call backs to check if you’ve reached home safely. The goal is to ensure that your SOCIAL outing is fun, and more importantly, safe.
The company has also signed a year-long partnership with the not-for-profit organisation One Future Collective, to create company-wide policy changes and new trainings on sexual harassment in the workplace, gender sensitisation, as well as gender diversity and inclusion with empathy and heart at its core. Impresario is committed to the cause of inclusivity and diversity by also recently hiring a Diversity Officer to lead the initiative.
At your nearest Impresario restaurant, you will now find a lot more women working across all levels, with a new internal policy that mandates that a minimum of 20% of the workforce is to comprise women. By proactively employing more female staff across its culinary, managerial and guest relations teams, the company will provide more opportunities for employment and engagement.
Leave a Reply